Eternal Fire
by sapph89
Summary: What if Graduation went different? What if Angel acted more like the vampire he is instead of the human that he wants to be? What would happen then? This is my take on it.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own Buffy the Vampire Slayer, or Angel. I wish I did, but I don't. They both belong to Joss Whedon, and his amazing mind. Please don't sue me! So, on to the summery

Summery: What if Graduation went different? What if Angel acted more like the vampire he is instead of the human that he wants to be? What would happen then? This is my take on it.

AU season 3, ep 22 on.

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He took her hand and felt the warmth of her body leave. He picked her up tenderly, as if she was a piece of blown glass. Once she was in his arms he raised himself gently making sure to keep his good balance and footing.

She felt as if she were made of the air itself and that made him worry. The last time he saw her she was light, but she wasn't starved. Now she looked and felt starved. She was so weak that she burrowed deeper into his arms, even though he knew that he had no body heat to offer her. Had she been awake she would have remembered that as well.

Still, he carried her to his couch and tried to lie her down on the coushin, but she refused to let go of him. That small trusting act made his heart both swell and break. He had done this to her, he was the reason that she was like this, yet she still trusted him with her life and that made him love her even more.

He tried yet again to put her down on the seat but still she resisted. As he continued to try her...unconscious state became troubled. She finally voiced her discomfort as a slight whimper while burrowing deeper into his chest. He heard her whimper and responded before he could ever think. He brought her neck to his mouth and suckled on the raised care that marked her as his and began to purr. As soon as he started to suckle she calmed her movements, and she herself began to purr in response to him.

As he finally got a hold of his instincts, he felt both of them purring, and he pulled back in shock. As soon as he pulled away she stopped her contented purring and tilted her head to the side, offering him her neck, and in the same token, her life. Once again his instincts took control and he buried his face into the curve of her neck. He didn't bite her he still had that small amount of control over his beast, but he couldn't tear him self from her.

He continued with his previous assault on her neck, resuming both the purring and the harsh nipping and sucking of his mark. He felt his mate arch her body into his, and he purred louder with satisfaction knowing that she still responded so well to him, even after all this time.

The woman in his arms was beautiful. She was comely opposite of her mate and that is what made them both so beautiful especially when they were together. She was small, no more than 5' 4'' and extremely petite. She had gorgeous green eyes that made everyone smile when they looked into him or her. Her hair was a beautify gold color, and they way it shone in the sun made everyone think that she had a little star attached to her hair.

As the male felt his mate respond to him he felt that others were close, people that he wasn't sure if he could trust. So he gave one last long suck and nip as well as a kiss to the mark on his mate's neck and put her down.

He knew that his more animals like side was coming out, but right now with his mate like she was, he didn't care. He took a protective stance in front of his mate and waited.

The people that came out of the darkness were ones he knew, but right now, with his mate in her condition, and with his beast close to the surface, there was no way he would let them get too close.

There were three people in front of him. Two males and one female. They were his mate's family, surrogate family. The males were the first ones that tried to take a step forward. He growled out a warning for them to stop. They did so and waited for him to calm. Then one of the males spoke to the other. He could understand but didn't care what the male said.

"Xander back off. I'm going to try something that will hopefully calm him down."

The man that spoke as called Giles, he remembered. He was his mate's surrogate father, friend, and co-protector. He knew this and eased up on the growling, but just a little.

Giles took a calming breath and took another step forward. He heard Angel growl increase in volume, but the Watcher didn't stop. He took another step forward and bared his throat to the irate vampire. He knew that this was a risky move, but one that needed to be taken. He had to get to his slayer- his daughter, and make sure that she was all right.

Giles continued to bare his throat. He knew that this was a classic sign of submission and subjugation, especially when done to or from a vampire. This meant that they would offer their lives and in turn loyalty, obedience, and respect.

He heard the vampire stop growling for a moment and looked up. The vampire was standing right in front of him. He stayed still not wanting to anger the vampire further.

Angel had walked up to the older male, the beta, as far as he was concerned, and looked him over, as well as taking in a sniff. He knew that the beta held a parents love for his mate and he knew that the beta would help solve the problem that he was having with his mate. He didn't know exactly how much to trust the beta, but he did trust him so Angel did the only thing that his instincts would allow him to do.

Angle took the last step and stood right in front of the older male. He increased his growling and waited for the other to make his move, this was a test, one that if the beta didn't pass would end in death.

Giles looked up at the sudden movement of the irate vampire and made no physical response when the vampire growled. Giles didn't know what to do. He knew that he did nothing to anger the vampire but he still wondered what he should do. So he did the only thing he could, he titled his head farther to the side, and exposed his jugular again. He hoped that doing so would appease him.

Angel watched that beta with curiosity, waiting to see what he male would do. When he saw him bare his throat even more this was the answer that both Angel and his beast wanted. So Angel did the natural vampire act when a person had pleased a vampire: Angel reached forward, and let his fangs scrape the side of the beta's neck. He felt the beta tense at the pain of his fangs, but angel wasn't done. He tasted the blood that was on the tip of his fang and after he was done tasting the blood, leaned over and licked the two little scratches that he had left of the other man's neck. As soon as Angel touched his tongue to the scrapes, he felt the other male relax into the touch.

Angel gave a soft grunt, and detached him from the beta, catching the other male when he almost lost his footing. Angel nudged the male with his head and led him over to his mate. He turned around once he saw that the beta was seeing to his mate, and turned to the two others.

The other male stood in front of the female. Angel studied the boy, Xander, that was his name, and the boy didn't back down form Angel's challenging stare.

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	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I don't own Buffy the Vampire Slayer, or Angel. I wish I did, but I don't. They both belong to Joss Whedon, and his amazing mind. Please don't sue me! So, on to the summery

Summery: What if Graduation went different? What if Angel acted more like the vampire he is instead of the human that he wants to be? What would happen then? This is my take on it.

AU season 3, ep 22 on.

AN - I want to thank you for the single review that I got. And no I'm not being sarcastic, I actually am happy with one review. Everyone has to start somewhere. I am not going to be an annoying author that demands so many reviews before I update. I will update when I have a chapter ready, when ever that is. However there are things in my life that may make it hard for me to update at a regular basis. And so with that on with the story. And from now on Authors Notes will be in bold.

PS -I am trying to write in more dialogue.

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Angel kept on looking in the boy's eyes. Now that the boy had caught his eye, Angel wouldn't allow him to look away. His beast was also demanding that he put the boy into his place and re-affirm his role as the leader of this "coven"

Angel may have been trying to be human because of the soul that he was cursed with, but he was a vampire. And in the Vampire society there was a certain law that everyone followed. With Angel being the oldest and strongest male, his role was the leader, or Alpha. Giles, the second oldest and strongest male fell into the role of beta, which in all honesty should have been Spike's job, his former-most favored childe. And so with that rule it was natural that the youngest and least useful male be the gamma, or last in the male hierarchy. That was how the male part of the ladder worked; and the female's social ladder was basically the same. Both the males and the females of a "coven" could rise in rank in a few ways. The most common way was to be favored by a high-ranking member. The other way for a vampire to rise is to fight for the position. Then there was the other way: if a Master Vampire, like for example The Master, or even Angel (or Angelus) were to sire a childe, female or male, then that childe would automatically have a higher rank, purely because of who sired them.

Angel wasn't aware of it but as he was staring the boy down he was starting to growl again.

Xander was getting very scared. Angel wasn't acting like himself, he had no more signs of the poison that was slowly killing him earlier, Buffy was unconscious, and what's more, he bit Giles. This was more than Xander could handle. He was officially starting to freak out but there was this other thing that was freaking him out even more. The voice. There was a voice in his head, one that was telling him to not look away from Angel's eyes. It was telling him to keep on staring, and to not release his gaze. He heard Angle start to growl again and remembered faintly hearing someone once say never look a predator in the eye, that it was a challenge of dominance when one did that.

"Xander! Look away from his eyes now! Do it and then tilt you neck to the side. Bare your throat to him like Giles did. He thinks that you're trying to question his dominance!"Willow whispered in a fierce voice, a voice that Xander had long ago learned never to ignore. Xander took a deep breath and did as Willow asked.

Xander looked at the ground and then exposed his neck. _"What the HELL am I doing? Deadboy is acting like a real vampire and here I am giving him a free invitation to suck me dry? What is Willow thinking? How ca-"_ Xander's thought process was caught off when he felt a pair of fangs enter his neck.

Angel heard the female behind Xander give the instructions that would save the boys life, and he vaguely wondered if the boy would be smart enough to take her advice, when he saw the gamma lower his eyes. Angel realized he was moving before he even meant to. Xander's neck was barely exposed when Angel tore into the boys neck...

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I know I know a cliffhanger. You know, I actually hate those when I read fan-fic's so you know what? I'll keep on going till the end of this chapter. Just because I'm nice.

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... He was going to show the boy just who led this coven and who the Master was. The boy needed a lesson, and Angel was going to give him one. He tore into Xander's neck and took a strong pull from his blood. He wasn't gentle like he was with the beta. The gamma gave him no reason to be gentle, and as far as Angel was concerned this was his punishment. He ripped himself away from the boys neck and growled low in his throat. He repeated the act of licking the boys neck and cleaning up the wound that he had inflicted. He was very surprised to hear the boy whimper with loss when he would take his tongue away from the wound. Angel smirked at that; it just proved that the boy belonged in a structured pack and that made Angel proud. Angel gave the boy a low growl that could almost pass for a purr and gently released the boy from his hold.The boy was able to keep his balance once Angel disengaged contact and the boy stood there, almost as if he was in a daze, his eyes still looking at the ground, but at the same time he had a look of pride and honor about him now.

Angel turned to the female. The last member of his coven and pack. She was the one that held the most interest for him, besides his mate of course. Willow. She was a naturally timid girl, one that always knew her place and didn't really question why she was in that place. But she had power and strength that even she didn't see or know about. She had already somewhat mastered her use of magic and Angel knew that she would grow even more powerful and in control of her magic's. He looked into her eyes knowing that she would meet them for a brief second and then lower them, that was just who she was. He wasn't expecting her to calmly walk up to him, all the while with her eyes adverted, and stop right in front of him.

He took a moment to study her. This was unusual for Willow; to step forward without being asked, or more likely forced after a panic attack. He looked her over as well as taking a sniff to see what she was feeling. He was able to smell Oz. Oz's scent was all over her, making it known to all the things that could smell that they had very recreantly taken the next step and Oz had claimed her. That made Angel growl low in his throat. He had no attraction toward willow, she was his mate's sister, in every way except for blood, and he had know Willow longer than Oz had. She was part of his coven and so he was responsible for her well being and safety. It was also his responsibility to make sure that she had an acceptable mate. Oz had crossed a line that he should have known was there; after all he was a were-wolf. Angel would take that up with Oz later but now he had his coven to deal with.

Angel lifted his hand up to Willows face and made her look at him. She met his eyes and turned her head, exposing the column of her neck with no scent of fear, and just stood there. He gave her a small smile and gently pulled her into his arms. He placed his fangs at her pulse point and very gently bit her. She stiffened up at the first twinge of pain but forced herself to relax. She stayed very still, not making a noise or sound until he removed his fangs. She made a small kneeing sound of protest, but was silenced when he cleaned up the little trickle of blood that come from the neat mark that he had made. He continued to lap at her now clean wound to make sure that she knew that he wasn't mad at her, and that he would always watch over her. She gently nuzzled his chest and gave a small sigh.

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Ok that is the end of this chapter and I am already working on the next one. I hope that you like this story, which out of my two others is actually the worst, but I still hope that some one out there likes this story besides Meg-sama, and the rest of my friends. Ok well, until next time.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I don't own Buffy the Vampire Slayer, or Angel. I wish I did, but I don't. They both belong to Joss Whedon, and his amazing mind. Please don't sue me! So, on to the summery**

**Summery: What if Graduation went different? What if Angel acted more like the vampire he is instead of the human that he wants to be? What would happen then? This is my take on it. **

**AU season 3, ep 22 on.**

**AN - I just realized that I really haven't explained how Buffy got this way, and why exactly Angel is responsible for being in the state that she is in, so this chapter will do so, and so that means that there will be a small flashback as well as the continuation of the last chapter. I got a review earlier and they brought up an interesting point, so thank you, Exiled-Away for making me think on that. Exiled-Away asked me if Buffy was going to be turned because of how much blood she lost when Angel Drank from her. About Buffy, well the answer is...**

**Oh and as for Faith, and what become of her, well you'll just have to read the next chapter and find out.**

**Ok just to let you know the details of the flash back are kinda detailed and taken mostly while I was watching the DVD so I have Direct quotes and all that as well as way too detailed. **

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Angel released Willow and turned around to look at his newly marked coven. Xander was still off in a daze, but there was a difference in him. His stance was completely different and Angel was going to find out soon why that was.

Angel looked over at Giles and saw that he had Buffy on her side and was gently rubbing a sleeve over the bite mark on her neck. Angel gave a low growl of disapproval and Giles stopped his actions as soon as he heard Angel. He looked back over his shoulder to Angel, got up and walked calmly up to Angel and spoke in a soft voice that Angel wouldn't have been able to hear had he not have been a vampire.

"She's lost a lot of blood Angel, she needs to go to the hospital and get a transfusion. She could go into shock and die if she doesn't get help soon."

Angel still wasn't a hundred percent in control of his self, but he understood enough. He gave a small nod of his head to show that he understood what Giles was saying. He walked past the Watcher to go to his mate and looked down at her. As he did so he couldn't help but remember what had gotten them to this point.

_**Flashback:**_

_"Drink, drink from me" Buffy said as she looked at Angel who was lying down on the bed propped up against pillows. _

_"No" Angel responded almost immediately, not even thinking about such an act._

_"It's the only way" _

_"Get away" Angel said as he tried to push Buffy away from him as he struggled to get out of the bed._

_"It'll save you" Buffy pleaded with him as she grabbed a hold of his arm, not letting him move._

_"It'll kill you." Was Angel's weak response._

_"Maybe not, not if you don't take it all." Buffy argued with only a slight tremor in her voice. _

_"You can't ask me to do this." Was Angels pleading response._

_"I won't let you die. I can't. Angel the blood of the Slayer is the only cure." Buffy said with conviction in her voice._

_"Faith" was Angel's one word response_

_"I tried." Buffy responded she looked down and then looked back at Angel " I killed her." She finished in a barley auditable whisper._

_"Then it's over" Angel said with a note of finality in his voice._

_Angel staggered from the bedroom and Buffy, grabbing onto the wall as leverage, then pushing himself to the coffee table in the living room in front of the fire. Every step causing him to loose what little strength he had left. _

_Buffy chased after him, grabbing him and pulling him up as he crashed into the coffee table. _

_"It's never over! I won't let you die. Drink." Buffy said shaking him slightly almost as if that act would shake some sense into his stubborn head. _

_"Please." Angle pleaded with Buffy while looking down, wavering even more on his feet. _

_Buffy finally got fed up and pulled back and punched Angel in the face hoping to force him to change into vamp face. Angel staggers back from the force of the punch, he's hunched over, using the strength that he didn't have to keep both his footing and control. He looked up at Buffy with a confused and hurt face. _

_Buffy looks at him, pulls back again and punches Angel a second time. He is barely able to keep his unstable footing, and this time it takes him longer to turn and face her again. His strength was fading fast. He looked back at Buffy with a pleading face almost as if to say '_please don't, I beg you.'

_Buffy looks back at him and she puts a face full of concentration and she punches him for the third time and this time there's a feral snarl. It takes Angel no time to turn to face Buffy once again, with him gaining the extra strength that all demons get when they are in their true form. _

_Buffy stars at his changed face for a moment and reaches up to pull the right strap off of her shoulder. She pauses to take a breath and then reaches up to thread her fingers through his hair, and she leads his head to the crook of her neck. _

_She held his head in place and waits for what she knows is coming. Then it happens, he bites her. Her face flashes with pain, a great amount of pain._

_Angel pushes her body up to his fangs and digs his fangs deeper into her neck. Blood is leaking out of the seal that his mouth had created; it was just coming out too fast for him to drink._

_As Angel continues to feed Buffy is loosing her strength. She's no longer able to support both of their weight and they fall. Even as they are both rushing to the ground Angel never lets go of Buffy._

_Buffy's face of pain becomes mixed with that of passion and pleasure. Finally it all became too much for her as her left hand shot out and found the lead water pitcher that Angel had knocked to the ground when he came into the living room earlier. As she grips it, it is crushed in her grasps. Angel continues his now extremely forceful and rough feeding as Buffy rears back her leg. It almost looks like she is trying to hold him to her, almost as if she was trying to wrap her leg around him, when suddenly her leg kicks back and the coffee table it sent flying in two directions from just a single kick._

_Buffy looses her last bit of strength after that. Her eyes got big one last time, then her sounds of both pain and pleasure started to die down. Then her eyes finally closed and she knew no more._

_Angel rolled off of Buffy at just about the same time her eyes closed. He's breathing hard as his face changes back to normal. There's a small trail of blood leaking out the side of his mouth. He looks over at Buffy, wanting to see if she was okay. He took her hand..._

_**End Flashback**_

That was what happened. Angel knew that this was his fault, but there was still time to make it right.

"We're going to the hospital. Now."

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**Ok that is the end of this chapter and I am already working on the next one. I know that I said a small flashbck and I honestly ment it to be small, but that just didn't work out. In the next one both Faith and Buffy finally appear and they confront one another, but will that mean more pain or something better? Until next time**

**-sapph**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: see first 3 chapters**

**Summery: What if Graduation went different? What if Angel acted more like the vampire he is instead of the human that he wants to be? What would happen then? This is my take on it. **

**AU season 3, ep 22 on.**

**AN - Ok just to let you know, the last part, that was Angel. He's the one that spoke. I really hope that you like this chapter, cause it's mostly Buffy and Faith. It most likely won't be all that long and for that I am sorry. It, in my opinion, isn't the greatest chapter so far, so you won't be the only ones to think so. I hope that the next chapter will be better.**

**P.S.- There will be swearing in this chapter, nothing too big, but swearing none the less**

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She was in a graveyard. _'Surprise, surprise, a graveyard. It's not like I don't see them enough.' _She looked around her and saw a few trees. The graves that surrounded her were...different. They were very primitive, no markers of any kind, but she knew what they were. The scent of fresh death came on the breeze to her. Her slayer told her that there was a massacre that night, that many were killed. She thought that she heard something move, and so she waited for a sign that there was something besides her there. There was nothing. Nothing moved, the wind barely even blew. That made her even more wary. She could tell that something was coming.

She waited. All the while she was memorizing the area, wanting to make sure that she knew all available hiding places and possible weapons. She was eyeing a promising looking club, when she heard the noise again. She whipped around.

Darkness. That is all that she saw. Buffy kept looking. She made another 360 and still all she saw was darkness and sand. _'Desert, I'm in a desert.'_ she thought to herself, just now realizing that she was stepping in soft sand. In her peripheral vision she caught a movement to her left. Buffy swung around going into a defensive stance only to stop cold from moving forward when she saw that the "thing" moving was Faith.

"How? I killed you." Buffy spoke in a shocked voice, never taking her eyes off of the rouge slayer that she had killed in the name of love.

"Chill B. I'm not here to hurt you. As to why I'm here I was hoping that you could tell me, I mean the last thing I remember is you stabbing me, me backhanding you and then my jumping off the ledge and hoping to god that I landed on the truck. Then there was this light and a voice said that soon I would 'know why.' Why what? And also, where the HELL are we?"

"I don't know Faith, I wish that I did but I don't. The last thing that I remember is making Angel drink from me and then I passed out. That's it." Buffy responded, never taking her eyes off of Faith, and never moving out of her stance. She was about to say something else when there was a blinding flash of light and after Buffy got her vision back she saw two beings facing both her and Faith.

"Ok, this is getting ridiculous. First of all I wake up in God knows where, then I see my crazy and homicidal little sister that I killed and then you two...things show up. Now I am really reaching my breaking point and I suggest that you two XL-smurfs start talking and fast before you get one very pissed off and strong slayer on your hands!" Buffy said shifting her stance to the new threat that had come forward.

The "XL-Smurfs" in question was actually the Oracles. They were the speakers for the Powers That Be and they had important news to tell both of the slayers, but getting the eldest slayer to listen was going to be the problem; for no matter what she said she had a true Warriors spirit. She instinctively protected everyone she came in contact with, even Faith, her little "sister" that had wandered off the path of good.

"You speak out of turn Lower Being. You should learn your place; or else someone will have to teach you it." Came the reply. To both Buffy and Faith the voice had a male tone to it, but there was something in the way that he spoke that made them think that the tough-guy tone was an act.

"Come now Brother. You know as well as I that they are not Lower Beings. They are Warriors. They hold power and sway over mankind, and they are to be respected just as we are." This time the voice that spoke was female. It had a ring of honesty and warmth. It was almost musical, and continued to ring into the darkness long after she was finished speaking.

"We are the Oracles. We are the voices for the Powers That Be and we have a message for the both of you, one that will decide the fate of many. You, Eldest Slayer, you have been prophesied as the strongest slayer to ever walk the Earth. You will be the only slayer to ever live past her twenty-second birthday and each year after that you will gain even more power, until you can rival that of the oldest Vampire ever. You will be the slayer that all demons and forces of evil fear. However there will be a price for that title. You will have to face an Evil that you had a brush with earlier this year, and someone you hold very dear will be taken from you.

"As for you Youngest Slayer, you have walked down a dark path. You have betrayed your very calling, and you have tried to kill your sister Slayer. You have aligned yourself with the evil that you and your predecessor were destined to destroy together and you have killed innocents. Tell us why you should not be punished?" This all came from the female Oracle. As she spoke to Buffy he voice was kind and filled with respect and honor. But when she got to Faith there was a noticeable difference. There was a tone of disappointment, and disgust.

Faith looked at Buffy for a moment and then at the female oracle. She stood up strait and started to walk closer to the two beings.

"Faith! Stop! You don't know them they could hurt you. Faith stop!" Buffy spoke in an almost desperate voice. Faith made no reaction and so Buffy did the only thing that she could think of, she raced to where Faith was and she threw herself in front of Faith.

"B, get outta' my way, there's no reason why I shouldn't go strait up to them and give them a piece of my mind." Faith said with a steely note in her voice. She tried to move past Buffy, but Buffy had other ideas.

Buffy pulled Faith's arm and when the younger twisted back to look at her Buffy slammed her fist into Faith's face. Or she tried to at least. Her fist went strait through Faiths head. Both Faith and Buffy just stared at each other and then they both looked at the Oracles.

"Are you ready to listen now?" The male said in an impatient voice.

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**Ok that is the end of this chapter and I am already working on the next one. I am so so so sorry that it took me this long to get this chapter out. It was just so hard to write. I am working on the conclusion to this chapter and the next chapter will have more of the mew coven and of the Mayor. sounds of doom! ok anyway I want ot thank all of the revoews that made me write faster and I hope that you like this chapter, even though I didn't. I look forward to the next chapter and to your reviews; but again they(reviews) aren't requiered or demanded, just greatly appreciated.**

**-Sapph**


	5. Chapter 4 Part 2

**Disclaimer: I don't own Buffy the Vampire Slayer, or Angel. I wish I did, but I don't. They both belong to Joss Whedon, and his amazing mind. Please don't sue me! So, on to the summery**

**Summery: What if Graduation went different? What if Angel acted more like the vampire he is instead of the human that he wants to be? What would happen then? This is my take on it. **

**AU season 3, ep 22 on.**

**AN - Ok I am very sorry about the spelling errors in the last chapter. I try to get them all but you know how it is. I was really surprised when I got the four reviews for chapter 4, and all of them liked what I had written. That just surprised me. Ok and on a note I am going to start dating the updates. Also I am going to Hawaii for a week and I really don't want to, in all honesty. But the point is that while I'm gone I will be working on chapter 5, but I will be unable to post it until I get back on the 24th.**

**P.S.- There will be swearing in this chapter, nothing too big, but swearing none the less**

**P.P.S.- Internal monologue shall be marked as followed: **_'thoughts' ok_** and with that, on to the chapter.**

**4/14/06**

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The foursome stood there, not making a move or a sound. The Oracles stood staring at the Slayers who were starting to freak out over the things that were happening to them. Buffy slowly pulled her arm out of Faiths head and looked at her arm, twisting it this way and that way. When she was satisfied with her examination she turned around to the Oracles and finally broke the silence.

"Ok what the HELL is going on here? Where are we and what is it you need to us to know?" Buffy asked while still standing in front of Faith, who was in shock over having a fist slammed through her face.

"We have brought you both here to give you a choice. Buffy you will be the strongest Slayer ever, that will not and cannot be changed. However there is a way to give you the extra strength that you will need to overcome both this evil and the one to come next by yourself." The female Oracle said while looking at Buffy, her aura radiating a kind and truthful feeling so strong that even Buffy could feel it.

"What's the next evil? Why do I need a power boost in order to defeat it?

Buffy wanted to relax, she really did, but she couldn't, especially with Faith here, she just didn't want to let her guard down. She still didn't completely trust the Oracles, no matter what they said or did. She knew that she couldn't truly trust them with Faith there, even thought Faith did all those horrible things to Buffy and her friends Buffy still thought of Faith as an innocent. Buffy just continued to stare at the Oracles, still standing in front of Faith, shielding her sister Slayer.

"It's not our place to say, doing so might change what is destined to be, but trust us when we say that you will need the power. Now as to how you would get the power boost that is up to Faith. She is th-"

"What? Wait a minute why is it up to me? What do I have to do with it?" Faith asked finally coming out of her daze at me mention of her name. She looked around at Buffy then to both of the Oracles.

"You know what you have to do with it, and you know what you must do as well. Just because you walked down the path of Darkness doesn't mean that you have to stay there. You can change. You can go back to the Slayer that you were meant to be." This time it was the male Oracle that spoke. His voice was soothing, almost to the point of being hypnotic.

Faith looked once again between her sister and the Higher Beings. Faith turned and stared into Buffy's eyes and realized what she had to do.

Buffy was staring strait at Faith, looking into her eyes. Then it happened. She saw the fire, the spark in Faith's eyes. Buffy recognized it as the same one that Faith had when she first came to Sunnydale, and as the same one that she saw when she looked into the mirror. It was the spark of the Slayer; it was the Warrior in her shining through. Buffy took a breath. She had never realized it, but the whole time that Faith was working for the Mayor and facing off against the Scooby Gang that fire was gone, leaving Faiths eyes void a the spark, of the life that made them glow. As Buffy continued to stare into the younger Slayers eyes she saw that Faith was making a decision herself, and a tough one by the looks of the creases that were starting to form on Faith's forehead. Faith closed her eyes for a moment then, almost as if she was gathering her energy, and opened her eyes once again. There was a change to her, it seemed almost palpable, and it made Buffy take in a breath. Standing before her was a True Slayer. One that looked ready to sacrifice herself for the benefit of all mankind

"You know what you have to do. Your honor will not let you do anything less. You know what you are destined to do." The male's voice once again rang out and seemed to resonate in the inky blackness of the night. As Buffy heard his words she felt herself shudder. There was something ominous in his voice

"What does she have to do?" Buffy asked, somehow dreading the answer. She was surprised when Faith answered instead of one of the Oracles.

" I have to die B. I have to die"

------------------------------------------------

Angel picked up Buffy and turned to leave the mansion that he called home, as soon would his new coven. He strode past Giles and went out through the garden doors. He walked past the gate that surrounded the back and turned to go into the door that led to the garage. He opened the door after carefully balancing Buffy in one arm and looked at the car there. The black T-Bird convertible that stood parked there was one of the few things that he kept from his Angelus days. Back then the dark part of himself had seen the car in a person's driveway. Angelus has wasted no time in killing the original owners in order to get the car. Even though the memory of that night haunted him, Angel had kept the car, planning on using it to leave Sunnydale after his mate had defeated the Mayor on his ascension, now though he was going to use it to make sure that his mate would stay among the living.

Angle knew that his mate was close to Deaths door, and part of him wanted to take that last step needed to make sure that she would stay with him forever. But another part of him knew that if he were to take that last step, he would lose her forever. The being that would come forth wouldn't be his mate, not the one that Angel loved. It would be the type of mate that Angelus dreamed of. Buffy turned into a vampire was what Angelus secretly dreamed of. He desired Buffy, that much was obvious, but he wanted her to be his Queen. Together he had dreamed of them taking over the world and then destroying it. His dreams were the main reason that he had tried to kill her so often. He was _The _Angelus. He had no business falling for a human, let alone a Slayer. So Angelus had reacted in the only way that he knew: Violence.

Angel shook these thoughts out of his head as he heard the footfalls of his coven coming in behind him. He turned to look at them and saw that they were all staring at him. He turned back to the car and put Buffy in the Passenger seat.

"Get in. We're going." He said, leaving no room or argument and knowing that he would get none.

He finished fastening the safety belt across his mate's unconscious form and gave one last caress to her face before turning and making his way around the car to get to the drivers side. He looked up and saw that all but Willow were in the back seats of the car. This surprised him, out of all the others he expected Willow to be the one that would follow his instructions without question, but here she was, not following his word. Angel really didn't want to, but he would put her in her place if he had to. He knew that to do so would make her think that Angelus had resurfaced, and he was going to give her one final warning when he saw that she was starting to move. He watched her with obvious curiosity as she walked to the passenger side and opened the door. She took a step and climbed over Buffy to sit next her. Angel watched as she settled herself into the seat and then turn to Buffy. She leaned the small girl into her and held her close, offering her the small amount of body heat that she could.

Realization hit Angel as he saw Willow gather his mate's body closer to her own. _'She's trying to keep Buffy warm. She knows that I can't.'_ Angel thought as he saw his mate snuggle deeper into her sister's arms.

"Angel, we need to hurry." Willow spoke in her classic soft, but knowing voice. Angel nodded and opened the door and get in. He looked at the ignition and saw that the keys were still in place. He never bothered to take them out; _'What's the point? No one ever comes in here besides me anyway.'_ he started the car and clicked the button on the remote to open the garage door.

"Hold on Buffy, you'll be better soon." He heard Willow whisper out to Buffy as they pulled away from the Mansion.

-------------------------------------------

"Sir, we found her, she was beaten. She's barley alive."

"Take me to her."

"But sir-"

"NOW!"

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**Ok guy's sorry about that, but it took me awhile to get this chapter out. I hope that there's not any hard feelings out there, but I was lost on what to do with this chapter for a while. it's the 14th right now and I'll try to update one more time before I leave early Monday morning, but please don't count on it. I hope that you like this chapter. I mean, it's like almost a full page longer than any I've written before(excluding the Authors Notes.) I hope that you like this chapter.**


	6. Chapter 5

I am so so so sorry that it's taken me this long to get this chapter out. There are just some things in my life that I can't control and this is the first time that I've gotten to post this. I know that this chapter is extremely short, but this is all that I have right now. I would be most grateful if anyone of you would give me some ideas as to what you would like to see next, because to be all honest, I have no clue what to use for the middle. I have the ending all worked out, it's the main body that I'm having trouble with. So here it is chapter 5 of Eternal Fire.

6/11/06

* * *

Chapter 5

"Where is she?"

"We found her by the docks. She was in the back of a truck. It looks like she jumped into it."

"Where is she?"

"She's on her way to the hospital. We called an ambulance and left Mitch to watch over her until the ambulance arrived while we told you."

"Let's go."

"Sir, the time-"

"LET'S GO!"

"Yes sir." The vampire spoke softly. He realized that no matter what argument he used the Mayor would go to the slayer's aid, the slayer that he saw as his daughter.

When Faith first entered the fold he had felt the natural desire to run the other way. The girl was strong. Almost as strong as her predecessor. He could feel the power rolling off of her in waves. Vampires learned with age how to tell if there was someone powerful nearby. Whether they be human, demon, or other supernatural being, and boy, the slayer that had been protecting the Hellmouth for the last two years was one of the most powerful beings that he had ever met, including some Master Vampires.

He turned and began to walk out of the room and hoped that the Mayor wouldn't kill him for not being there to protect Faith.

"No. There is no way that I am going to let you die so that I can get some stupid power boost. We are both leaving this place, I'm going to wake up and stop the mayor, you're going to wake up, heal and then go to jail and pay for what you did while you were evil and that is the end of discussion. C'mon Faith, we're leaving."

Buffy turned expecting Faith to follow, but she didn't hear anything. Buffy turned once more, and saw that Faith was still standing where she was and was looking at Buffy. Buffy saw that there was a look of conviction that rivaled Willow's "Resolve Face". Buffy knew what Faith was determined to do, and Buffy felt her heart break a little at the knowledge that she couldn't change Faith's mind. She sighed and started to walk back to the three beings that stood there, waiting for her to come to terms with what will be.

Angel drove like a bat out of hell to get Buffy to the hospital, and once he got there he didn't slow down. He parked the car and slid Buffy gently away from Willow's warmth and ran through the automatic doors that seemed to take forever to open enough for him to get through. Once he was in the doors he ran strait to the triage room and started to shout.  
"Help! I need some help over here! Help, I need a doctor!" Angel yelled in a voice that made the nurses jump. They were used to people coming in screaming for help. To them it was unusual for anyone in Sunnydale to not need help. The thing that had startled them was the force of the man's demand. They had never heard that sort of tone used by such a young man before, or what they perceived as a young man. They looked up at him, frozen by both the fact that he was so handsome, and the pure worry and concern etched on his face. Then at almost the exact same time they all remembered their jobs and their training kicked in. The adrenaline rush was on...


	7. Chapter 6

Angel was ready to kill someone. The doctor preferably after he made sure that Buffy was ok. The man had asked Angel idiotic questions. Did Buffy take drugs? That in it's self is the stupidest idea since B-I-T-C-H spelled "bitcha". Angel had answered the questions, barely suppressing his anger at not being able to stay near Buffy as she was rushed into a room. He paced the hallway of the hospital like a caged animal that wanted to hunt. He went to pivot so that he could continue his pacing when he looked up and there was Xander. Angel was surprised with both the boy and himself because the boy made no noise and was able to sneak up on him. Angel was even more surprised when he heard the gamma speak.

"Angel, the nurses need to ask you some questions, I'll stay and watch over her." Xander spoke in his usual shy guy manner, but there was a difference in it that Angel caught. He looked into Xander's eyes and saw that the boy wouldn't meet his eyes fully. Angel figured that the nurses could wait for a minute, it was time to figure out what sort of changes the boy had gone through since the marking.

"Do you know why I bit you boy?" Angel spoke in a voice so remininsant of Angelus that Xander got a chill down his spine.

"No. Willow said that you did that because I challenged your dominance. I suppose that you bit me to... teach me a lesson, put me in my place maybe. All I know is that you were acting too much like Angelus for me. I was scared shitless."

"Well give the boy a prize; he knows more than he lets on. You're right; I bit you to "put you in your place" as you called it. There was another reason: I lead this coven, and as such I am alpha. You are the lowest of the low in this coven and you do as I say or you won't live to regret it. Am I clear?" Angel was amazed that the boy was able to make those connections, and in the basest part of his demonic mind he was starting to get worried. The boy was smart, smarter than he seemed and if he wanted to he could be a problem.

"Watch over her. Don't let anyone besides a nurse or doctor in her room. Do you understand me?" Angel decided to see if the boy was trustworthy or not, this was his first, last and only chance to do so.

Xander just nodded his assent and stood by the door that led to Buffy's room. Angel took one last look and went down the hall and around the corner to the nurse's station, wondering to his self what the boy would be capable of if he were to be turned...

* * *

"B' you heard the same thing that I did. You know that you need the power that I can give you. You know that if you don't, things will get a whole lot worse without you. You know that the blueberries are telling the truth about you being the strongest of slayers. I mean you saw the proof for yourself twice. The first when I was fighting you to kill Angel when Mrs. Post screwed with my head and again when you gutted me. You held back on one of those times and I went all out. All you got was a small bruise. I looked like a guy beat me. And then look at what happened when you didn't hold back. "B" you are the strongest of us. And if things go as these things said you're going to have a hellavu' time getting the best of the new Big Bad. This is my chance to help you instead of being a pain. Let me do this." Faith knew that she had Buffy right where she needed her. The Oracles may have scared the hell out of her with the whole fist-through-the-face thing, but now she knew that this is where her path as a slayer led her.

The reason that Faith acted like she did was due to one very basic instinct: she acted like she did because of fear. She was scared that she would die alone in a dark ally one night and no one would know, or even worse care. The fact that these beings were talking about her death was still very unsettling to her, but the type of death that they offered was different. This death held honor, and knowing that people would, not morn her to be certain, but feel emotions because of her death changed things for her. She could go on this path and not be scared of what it held, because she already knew. And she was comfortable with that. This was the path that she was supposed to lead, and this is the path that she would finish.

"Alright. I'll do it, but... Faith, you have to be sure of this cause this is death that we are talking about here, and this isn't the type you come back from. This is not drowning in a puddle and being brought back. There is no "back," so tell me now, what do you want to do?"

* * *

Xander was standing in front of the doors that lead to Buffy's room looking like some sort of bodyguard-in-training. He didn't move, didn't pace, and some of the nurses that passed by thought that he was dead or asleep on his feet because it seemed like he hardly breathed.

Xander looked calm and collected on the outside, but it was an entirely different story going on in his mind. He was talking to himself a-mile-a-minute, and that was the slow version. He didn't know what was going on. He knew that when Angel had spoken to him just minutes before that he had responded, but it wasn't _him_ that responded. Ever since he and the others went to the Mansion to check in on Buffy there was a voice that's been telling him what to do, and his body has been doing it with no permission from his mind. Looking Angel in the eyes while he was getting in touch with his inner Angelus was not his idea; it was the voice's idea. Telling Angel that he knew and understood why he was bitten was the voice's idea as well. And what scared Xander the most was that there was a tiny part of him that wanted to listen to the voice.

Xander was just starting to turn to move to the other side of the door frame when he saw a shadow move in Buffy's room. As soon as he saw the shadow the voice took control once again. Xander felt his body move into the open door even while he heard himself yell Angel's name, knowing that the vampire would be able to hear him. When Xander got a step into the room he found out what the shadow was: it was the Mayor; and he had a hand over Buffy's mouth and nose.

When Xander saw that the man-turned demon was trying to kill his friend he stopped trying to figure out the voice and started to let it do what it wanted to do.

"Angel, get in here now!! Something's happening!" Xander yelled to Angel as he ran at the man and jumped on him, tearing his hands off of his friend's mouth in the process. As Xander rose to his feet Angel ran into the room and took a stance in-between the mayor and his coven. The mayor struggled to his feet, and looked Angel in the eye.

"What the FUCK is going on here!?"

"Murderous little fiend! Did you see what she did to my Faith?"

Angel gave a little smirk in response to the visualization of his Buffy beating the life out of the rouge slayer. "Hadn't made plans to weep over that one. He spoke in a voice that held smug satisfaction while looking the mayor face to face.

"Well I'd get set for some weeping if I were you. I'd get set for a world of pain. Misery love company young man, and I'm looking to share that with you and your whore!"

As the mayor had started to throw insults at him Angel grew angrier and angrier, finding it harder and harder to contain the beast in him. Finally it became too hard as the mayor said the word "whore" and Angel, meaning only to shove the man/monster out of the way, found the blood of his slayer newly coursing through his veins made him more powerful. The man flew through the air, smashing into the window beside the door connecting the two rooms. As the mayor fought to right himself once more, Angel shifted his weight and panted trying to control his anger and new temper.

"Well, heh, heh! Looks like somebody's been eating his spinach!" The mayor spoke in a voice full of amusement as he straitened up looking at Angel, Xander and the hospital workers who had gathered when the ruckus started. "No, it's ok folks. It's all right. The show's not over, but there will be a short intermission. Don't want to miss the second act. All kinds of excitement."

"I'll be there, between you and Buffy. You can count on it."

* * *

SOOOOO SOOOO SORRY that it took me this long to update the storry, but I lost my internet access and now I'm doing this over the school computers. The seventh one will be up soon.

-Sapph


	8. Chapter 7 Part 1

**Here is a chapter (a small one I know) that has nothing but Buffy and Faith. It's meant to be a bridge so that when I get to the next chapter there will be more meat in the story (figuratively speaking) so without further ado, here is chapter 7.**

Buffy was lost. She knew that Faith was without a doubt going to let her self be killed so that Buffy could add Faith's power to her reserves, but that wasn't the biggest issue. The big issue was that even when Buffy fought Faith in an all-out fight there was a secret. Buffy didn't go all out, she was still holding herself back. She only wanted to hurt Faith enough to knock her out so that she would be easier to bring to Angel. The knife was brought for two reasons: the first was to make Faith angry enough to get sloppy in her fight because Buffy had taken one more thing that had belonged to her, (in faiths mind the town, watcher, and friends were supposed to be hers.) And the second was so that if things went bad, Buffy had a weapon on hand to finish the job. Buffy knew that she had to tell the Oracles and Faith the truth about her powers before anything irreversible happened.

"Faith, Oracles, I need to tell you something. I never truly went all out on anyone, not even Angelus. The fights that I've had with Faith? I was still holding back enough so that I wouldn't hurt her too bad and end up killing her. Are you sure that I need the power boost since you've only seen me fight with about half my strength?" Buffy's voice was soft, hesitant in the darkness, but it reached the three other beings in the ancient graveyard.

All three turned to face her, and all three had a different look on their face. The male oracle had a look of pure shock on his face, one that almost made Buffy laugh in spite of the dire circumstances. Faith had a look of doubt on her face, but it was the look of the female Oracle that had Buffy wondering what was going through her brain. The female Oracle had a smile on her face, one that looked like she was listening to a joke that only she could hear.

"What do you mean Warrior? You could hardly handle Angelus, and barely had an easier time trying to get the Rouge under control. How dare you lie to us about your prowess? We are trying to help you, and you tell us _lies?_ How dare you?" The male Oracle started to speak in a voice full of doubt that had been housed on Faith's face, and ended his speech with a voice full of anger and hostility. He started to take a step towards Buffy when he was met with a blur. When the blur took visible form he found that Buffy was standing in front of him, her hand on his neck applying gentle pressure.

"Doe's that look like a lie to you? I don't lie about my powers, so don't ever accuse me of that again."

"So you have speed that is already greater than any other slayer, what about your strength. Surely it's not that great." The male still spoke with disdain and doubt in his voice although he had not removed his throat from Buffy's grasp.

"Brother, I do not think it wise--"

"No, if he doubts me, he will never respect me, warrior or not. He wants to see my strength? I'll show him my strength." Buffy interrupted the female Oracle while still looking the pompous male in the eyes.

And with that Buffy gripped the Oracles throat and lifted him up off the ground and high overhead. She increased the grip that she had on his windpipe and held it until he began to claw at her hand. Once he started to turn white she threw him at his sister's feet. Buffy stayed where she was as the male Oracle tried to right himself. His sister didn't help him, she just continued to look at Buffy. The smile on her face took on a smug appearance, and once her brother had righted himself she placed her hand on his shoulder and looked at him. There were no words spoken out loud, but the argument between the two of them was obvious.

Buffy did nothing but shrug and turned to look at Faith and couldn't help the chuckle that climbed out of her throat. Faith looked like she was about ready to faint. Her mouth was wide open and she had lost all the color in her face. Buffy shook her head and walker over to her sister slayer. As she reached Faith she gently closed Faith's mouth and then stood beside her waiting for the outcome of the argument.

She just stood there, waiting, and was quite content to continue to do so, but Faith had other ideas.

"B' what the hell was that? Where did that strength come from?"

"That is something that I think we would all like to know Slayer. Where did the extra strength come from?" The male was the one making the query for both he and his sister. The look on his face made it clear that he would not accept anything less than the truth. His sister on the other hand looked like she was having the time of her life.

Buffy just shrugged. She felt like playing with them. "On my seventeenth birthday when Angel and I were…together, I bit him. And let's just say that it was hard enough to break the skin and I was thirsty. Ever since then I've been stronger, faster and I have other vampire-like abilities."

Buffy knew that this was a big deal, but it didn't seem like that to her. She's had the extra stuff for a little over a year now and she's gotten used to it. She knew that she was the only slayer that had a vampire lover, Giles told her that enough when she and Angel first started dating, but she started to wonder if Vampires ever took human lovers. So she did research while they were both getting reacquainted with the whole dating scene.

She found that vampires often took human lovers so that they almost always had an easy blood source. And she also found that if a vampire found a human lover that he or she liked enough that they would prepare the human for their turning by giving them small amounts of vampiric blood. That way when the new childe was made they were already somewhat used to their new powers. The entire time that she and Angel were together she was careful to note if Angel ever gave her dark glasses to drink from. But no, he was a perfect gentleman, getting her waters, and milk and sodas in cans. She didn't know if she was grateful or angry that he never tried anything, but on the night of her seventeenth birthday she couldn't help herself. She wanted to see what it was like to have her vampire's blood in her, flowing over her tongue and down her throat.

So just before she reached her peak she buried her head into the hollow of his neck and when she reached her climax she bit him. With all the pleasure flowing through her and her desire to know what his blood tasted like, it wasn't hard to break the skin of his neck. Nor was it hard to suck on the blood that welled out of the bite.

_FLASHBACK_

Buffy made sure not to drink too much, knowing that the scent of both her virginal blood and his own would make his already rocky control even more strained. She took two big gulps and then held her tongue over the bite that marked him as her own. She was still quacking with shivers as she came down from her peak and as she did she felt like she was standing on the edge of the cliff, and before her was not a terrifying drop, but a sense of welcome and wholeness. She knew that she shouldn't but once again she was helpless to her own curiosity, and she moved her tongue and bit him again. This time she couldn't help it, her own morbid fascination made her bite harder and deeper into the marks that she had made just minutes before. As she did she felt the cool liquid flow down her throat and as that happened she thought that she saw the very cells of her being change as Angels blood mixed with her own. As she stared closer at this amazing sight, she saw that as the two different blood cells touched they changed and began to race at blinding speeds. She saw all this in a second and before she could even think about this new information she felt that the inner demon in her lover was not unaffected by her curiosity.

Buffy lifted her head, dimly aware that her lips were coated in the crimson liquid, and when her eyes met her lovers she saw that his had changed to their golden amber of his vampire self. Unmindful of her tainted lips she kissed him with every ounce of passion and love that she could find in her being.

As she kissed him she felt his teeth grow into their fang forms and not knowing why or what she was really doing, she ran her tongue under one canine, just enough to create a small cut. Quickly before he knew what she was doing she drew her own tongue back into her own mouth and sucked, creating a small pool of her blood. Then with infinite caution she kissed him once more, gently and carefully opening her lips to his eagerly questing tongue

She felt his body stiffen once his tongue came in contact with her small pool of blood. As hard as he tried, she refused to let him break the kiss until he had no choice but to swallow the pool of their mixed blood. As she slowly pulled back, still giving him small whispers of kisses. When she finally pulled back far enough to look him in the eye she spoke in a whisper so quiet that he would not have heard had he been human.

"Now we both know what the other tastes like."

Angel couldn't help it; he stared at her with open shock and admiration. He gently turned them over and he began to continue their night of lovemaking...

_END FLASHBACK_

"Ever since that night I've been more gifted with speed, and strength. I can also smell blood easier, but that's about it. The sun doesn't hurt me; neither do crosses of Holy Water. It looks like I was lucky that I got all the good traits."

"What about blood B'? Do you get hungry for it?" Faith's voice was a whisper of itself. Her tone one of confusion mixed with hurt. The look on her face revealed her terror of the unknown and unwanted.

Buffy knew that she should feel ashamed that she herself had taken the first step to becoming a vampire, but she didn't, and she had no problem looking Faith in the eye and answering the question.

"Only his. And since that night I've never had a drop of blood from anyone. Nor will I ever. The craving is a small one, nothing more than a little voice in the back of my mind that starts talking to me once every four months or so. Reminding me of the taste, the thrill and the sheer wrongness that I could have again if I truly wanted it. But I don't, I resist, and I never let it get control of me. I know who and what I am I know that I can never become what my lover is."

The other three beings didn't say a word as Buffy came to the end of her story. There was nothing left to say. Finally Buffy herself broke the silence that was slowly smothering the other occupants of the graveyard.

"So what happens now? Does Faith still have to die? It's not like the need the strength."

The male Oracle looked at his sister, once more arguing with her in their silent speech. With a sniff of disdain the female turned her face away from him and refused to look at him. He heaved a small sigh of exasperation, lifted his eyes heavenward as if asking for patience, and then looked at both of the slayers.

"No, now there is no need for Faith to die, but there is a new problem. Whether she agreed to it or not the Rouge was going to die tonight. The balance was tipped when you came back from death, and two slayers reigned when there should only be one. Chaos ensued, but small enough so that you were able to handle it. Regardless, the balance must be righted in one way or another. There is only one thing to do now that we know about this…bond with the Vampire Angel. The two reigning slayers _must_ fight. There is only one Chosen One, and now we must see who it shall be…

**What will happen next? Will Faith and Buffy fight? Who will win, and what happens to the looser?**

**Ok, I know that I said that this would be a short and small little chapter, but evidently I lied. I didn't think that I could come up with all this. So now I think that I'm gonna' have to have two parts to chapter 7. I don't really want to do that, but I think that this is a good place for me to leave off, and I know that it will leave you guys wanting more. Also, I'm gonna' start replying to my reviewers at the end of every chapter. So here it is; my responses to those of you who update!**

First Time Reviewers

**MythStar Black Dragon**-- THANK YOU FOR THE PRAISE! It means very much to me to see that a first time reviewer for my story liked this chapter that much. Also, I hope that you like this chapter as much as you did the last.

**softballgirl9411**-- I hope that you liked this chapter since it had nothing to really do with "the pack" and no that was not a season 1 hint although that does give me an idea... : ) I'm glad that you caught the wolve hierarchy referance there. The way that I figure it Vampires are hunters, just like wolves, and at one time the vamps were human, and we know that humans tend to travel in "pack" of our own as well. It just seemed to make the most sense. As to the voice in Xanders head, think about it, if you watched the show, then you should be able to figure it out.

**godessa39-- **I'm not fond of Xander at all and I was so happy when he was caught in the lie in the seventh season (even though Buffy didn't do anything to him grumble grumble). Personally I think that it might have been better if he was killed by Caleb, buy I think that I could use him in this story. I've read some of the stories where all of a sudden he finally gets that Angel is good and that it was Angelus that is the real bad guy, but that just doesn't seem like something that Xander would do. I think that Xander can understand and maybe accept that Angel is good and that there is a difference between Angel and Angelus, but he'd still be rude and completly hostel towards Angel for the plain and simple fact that h still loves Buffy, and Buffy belongs, heart and soul to Angel, and Xander knows it. I hope that you haven't seen this before because to tell you the truth that I've read so many fanfics that I have to constanly make sure that I didn't use something that I've read in someone else's story.

**ChristmasInHollywood**-- Thank you for the Favourites!! It means alot to me that this story is someone's favorites. Did you know that I almost thought about _**deleting**_ this story? I just didn't think that anyone really felt that way about this story. I hope that I can continue to make sure that this story remains on your favorites list.

**uskohakuchan**-- Thank you. I don't understand it but everyones says that I have a different writing style when all I'm trying to do is emulate the most common style that I read. Oh, well, what does it matter as long as you guys like it?

**penmom**-- Thank you, I hope to keep it going till the end of the fourth season. Wish me luck!

**Dark-Wiccan-Goddess**-- Thanks. I'm not going to put Dawn in the story or even the sequel that I hope to get to. Dawn just seems too whiney, and to be honest I hate her character. I wish that at the end of the fifth season that she had died, just faded awau cause now that Glory was gone, there was no need for The Key to exist either, but oh well, I'll just do it my way now.

**Dragon's Gothic Angel**-- Thank you for the compliment. I hope that you are still reading this even after my very long and unintended hiatus. The voice? It will all be revealed in time...

**Exiled-Away**-- I never said the he was Angelus, you implied that, understandably I admit. No, its still Angel as you now know, and you also know why he was acting the way he was. So, what do you think now? Do you know where it's going yet?

**spk**-- I'm glad that you like the vampire Angel. Don't get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with broody and moody Angel, but I loved it when he pretended to be Angelus again to get the information from Faith about Graduation. There's just something about Angels character that gets better when he's bad and doesn't care if he's breaking rules or hearts. See you next chapter.

Second Time Reviewers

**Angelflowers**-- The deal with Faith dying is that when she died, the Oracles were going to give Buffy the power of the Slayer that Faith had. That way Buffy not only had her already extraordinary power, but Faith's above average power as well. I like Faith well enough, mostly because I can understand her to a certain point. As for Angel and Xander? Well, let's just say that they aren't skipping through the tulips just yet...

**michebabyblue**-- I think that the story will only go on for maybe six more chapter beside this one. Then I will hopefully be able to work on the sequel that will take place in the alternate fourth season. It's not for sure that there will only be five more, but it's my rough geusstimation.

**ilovelobsters**-- Ok, I'm sorry, but please tell me, what made you come up with that name?! (Besides the obvious, I mean there has to be a story there!!) As to your review, thank you greatly, it always makes it a little bit easier to get back to a story when I know that people read them.

Third Time Reviewers

**Arica, Princess of Rivendale...**-- You got a little mad at me there at the fifth chapter didn't you? I'm glad that my lack of updates had the effect on you that **Asha Dreamweaver**'s had on me. I did update, and I plan on doing it again very soon.

**Ansleyrocks**-- Thank you from the bottom of my heart for your reviews. I'm so beyond happy that you like the fact that you can see what the cast is thinking. I am also very happy that you think that the emotions that I have running through my story are in character with the show. Every chapter before I update make myself re-read it and I ask myself if what I wrote would ever in a million years come out of that characters mouth. Thank you and I hope to hear from you again.

**Buffycoo999**-- I did continue, and I hope that you like where I went.

Senior Reviewers

**Ryna-chan**-- You still don't remember typing that response to the news that Faith had to die? You will, just wait. I want to thank you especially. Letting me bug and pester you about this story and my Circle of Magic story during Mr. Kane's class and lunch and sometimes even in choir has helped me get to here. I thank you for being the only one that reviewed four times out of six chapters, and I know that I will bug and pester you to read, edit, and give ideas for the next 5 that I plan on doing. It means a lot that even though you have never seen the movie or watched a single show and still you read this fic. Thank you.


	9. Chapter 7 part 2

There was silence in the clearing that the four supernatural beings occupied 

"Wait. Wait one moment! You told me that I had a choice to die for Buffy, giving her my strength and regaining my place of honor in the Slayer line. Now you are trying to tell me that I have to fight her to the death when, let's not forget, the first two times I tried to take her on, she kicked my ass! And now, just when we find out that she wasn't even close to using all the power that she has you want me to enter a fight that I know I won't survive. Tell me, how is that supposed to make me want to fight her?"

The female turned back to face the other three and opened her mouth to speak when she was cut off by Buffy.

"There is not going to be a fight. I won't allow it. None of you here know my true strength because I don't even know my true strength. I refuse to kill Faith just so that some "balance" will be righted again. I'm not a murdered, and I sure as hell am not a gladiator. I won't kill her. You can find another way to test my strength, but I won't do that."

The male Oracle was gaping at her. He looked like Buffy was the first one to tell him "no". "HOW DARE--"

"Hush Brother. That is enough. She is right. It is not fair or righteous of us to ask, or even order, a Warrior to face a battle when there is truly no hope of survival. She has proven that she has courage and honor by willingly making the choice to give up her life and her powers so that the Eldest will survive the coming trials. There is nothing left for her to do. There will be no fight, and that is the end of the discussion. She will be stripped of her powers, powers that will be sent on to the next Potential so that she will have a better chance of helping the Eldest in the coming battle. The Rogue's life will lie in the hands of others. If she is found worthy, she will live with no knowledge of the world that was once her haven. Her memory of this life as a warrior will be nothing more than a bad dream. That is the final decision. Do you agree to that Rogue?"

The other three were staring at the female Oracle, awed by the sudden power that she seemed to exude. Even her own brother was awed and cowed by the force of her voice and the amount of certainty behind it. Buffy and Faith were both unknowingly thinking that the female held the real power. It was then that Buffy made the connection.

"You were a Slayer. And judging by your brother's incredible pompous and arrogance, he was your Watcher wasn't he?" Buffy's voice came out firm and without doubt in the graveyard that they occupied.

The female Oracle said nothing. She merely smiled. Buffy was just about to ask her when she was the reigning slayer when she was silenced by the sweeping gesture made by the Slayer/Oracle's arms.

"This hallowed ground that we are standing on, this oldest of graveyards, is the resting-place of Slayers. This is the most hallowed and holy ground that you will ever walk. This is the final destination of slayers, their place of rest, their reward for fulfilling their destiny. There are no dangers here, no demons that need to be slain, and no prophecies that must be made whole. Just peace and quiet. It is where you will come to rest. It is where you will take the place of power at the very center of it. It is where you will take the throne as strongest of Slayers. The throne as Queen. That is your destiny. I said that this is a resting-place for Slayers, and it is. But as you know, you've never really followed tradition, and now you know why. This is where everything has led you. This is the ultimate place. This is where you belong. And when you reach it, there is nothing that you won't be able to do. Another has never held the power that you will wield. And it no one else will ever be able to wield it. You are the culmination of hundred of thousands of Slayers, and in truth, you are the beginning of the end of Slayers. Each Slayer after you will be less powerful, and in time, there will be no Slayers at all, and Slayers finally will be nothing more than myths, whispers of a time long pass, of a time with little hope.

"Your reign as Slayer will change many things. You will destroy many species of demons, and will set forth a change that will last till the end of time. You will be the reason that there is no more need for Slayers. You _will_ change the word, and the way that people live in it."

Buffy knew that the female oracle was indeed a Slayer, there was no doubt left in her mind once she heard the end of the speech. She didn't know what to think when she heard that she would be the downfall of entire demon species and the end of the very slayer line. It was just something that sounded like it came out of a fairy tale, and if Buffy knew anything, it was that her life was no fairy tale.

As Buffy looked at the female Oracle before her, she knew that there was no denying her destiny, even if it was more than the one that she had just gotten used to. Now she didn't have to worry about dying, but now she had to think about how to kill entire species of demons. It just seemed so...outrageous, that she almost couldn't wrap her mind around it. As she thought about all that she had heard that night, she remembered that the Oracles had said that she would lose someone close to her, as a price for being able to defeat this new evil.

"You said something about me losing someone close to me? Who, and why do they have to die when I don't need the power? Is there someway around it? I mean, I don't need the power, so they shouldn't have to die, right?" As she spoke she saw the male Oracle turn and look at his sister. The female was not looking at Buffy, or at her brother, but was looking at Faith, who had been standing off to the side ever since her little outburst.

"Little Slayer, what is your name? Your true name?"

Both Buffy and the male Oracle turned to look at Faith, who was looking at the Slayer/Oracle with wide scared eyes.

"What do you mean? My name is Faith. Always has been, always will be."

Buffy looked from the Oracles to her sister slayer and began to piece together the little puzzle pieces that she had been given so far. Faith's lack of a last name, her recklessness, her total lack of respect, and her unfortunate affinity for the darker side of things. It all started to make sense now that she thought about it.

"The Mayor... He's your real father isn't he? That was one of the reasons that you came here, to Sunnydale. You wanted to meet him. Wanted to see what he was like, and that was why you worked for him so easily. Your name _is_ Faith, but it's Faith Wilkins, isn't it?"

Faith looked like the proverbial deer in the headlights. Her face was frozen in a look of complete horror. The look lasted for only a second, but the other three occupants of the graveyard saw it and knew that Buffy had struck the mother-load of truth.

Faith kept her head up and didn't say a word in answer to Buffy's questions, but didn't deny them either. She knew that to deny it would be a lie, and she was beyond tired of saying, maintaining, and backing up lies. They just took too much time and energy. She just looked at Buffy and the Oracles, waiting for them to say something.

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As the Mayor left Buffy's room despite the protests of the doctors who wanted to make sure that he was not injured from his unexpected flight across the room, and the protests of the security guards who wanted to arrest Angel for violence against a government official, Angel focused entirely on the young human boy that may have just saved his mates life . Angel just stood there, now in complete control of his strength, if not his temper, and wondered how he was going to come to terms with the surprising hidden strengths that his new coven held...


	10. Chapter 8

Angel was tired of putting it off, of things getting in the way of his search for information and he'd had enough of it. Not to mention that the whelp had let the Mayor slip past him while he was on watch. Angel took some time to try to get his breathing under control before he looked at Xander.

"Get Giles and Willow here now. We won't be leaving Buffy alone any longer, and if the nurses try to keep you away, have Willow handle it. And boy, you'll be getting your punishment later."

Xander couldn't help the shudder of fear that went through his body at the last sentence from the very tense and very pissed off Vamp. He knew at this point that speaking would only lead him to more trouble, so he simply nodded his head once to the vampire and left the room to look for his friends, all the while dreading what the punishment would be. He knew that he had defied Angel by letting the Mayor slip past him while he was guarding over his friend. And part of him knew to a certain extent that he had failed and that Angel had every right to punish him as he saw fit. Xander only hoped that he would survive the punishment with minimal scarring and no lasting psychological effects

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Xander had just found Giles and Willow in the cafeteria on the second floor and was telling them about the attack and how Angel wanted all of them with him in Buffy's room when the voice decided to come back for an encore.

_'Behind you; he's coming. Get ready...NOW!'_ And again Xander reacted without conscious thought. Muscles that he hadn't notice tense shot out in action. He turned, grabbed the lapels of the person's coat and used the forward momentum and his right hip to flip the person and pin him to the floor. Xander didn't even notice that he had moved until he was looking into the wide eyes of a very startled Oz.

"Tense man?"

Xander was so shocked that he didn't say anything, just kept on staring at Oz. Vaguely he heard Willow exclaim about how he could do something like that to her boyfriend. He was so lost in thought about how his body had reacted to the voice once again that he didn't say a word until he heard Oz exclaim.

"God, Willow! What happened to your neck? A vamp bit you. Did you stake it? Is that why your here?"

This time it was all Xander, shy, gullible, nerdy Xander that spoke without thinking.

"No, Angel's the one that bit her. And me and Giles oh and Buffy too. That's why we're here."

"What?! Angel bit you guys? What the hell happened while I was looking for another sure?!" The usual monosyllabic man was gone, replaced with a man that feared the return of one of the most brutal and savage vampires that walked the Earth.

"Oz, I think, maybe, we should talk ok?" Willow's soft voice broke through Xander's haze, reminding him of Angel's words about Willow handling the nurses.

"Will's we can all have that talk later, for now can we not make the pissed off, very scary and strong vampire wait any longer? Please, I know I'm already in the doghouse with him as it is." Not realizing the canine reference until it was too late, Xander shot Oz an apologetic smile. The other teen just shot him a look that translated to _how can you be so calm?_

"Right. We shouldn't keep Angel waiting, especially if he's already not pleased with one of us as it is. That along with this attack on Buffy will undoubtedly have a very negative effect on his already...teetering human instincts." Giles spoke while polishing his already clean glasses.

Xander just nodded his head and began to lead the others to the room that held their hurt friend and her irate lover.

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Angel was standing next to Buffy's side while a nurse looked over her charts and made sure that the blood transfusion was going as planned. As Xander led the others into the small room the nurse looked up at the small crowd that was coming in to see her patient. Her face became clouded with a frown when she saw four people begin to enter the room; and as she opened her mouth to tell them that there was a two person limit on visitors she was interrupted by the young redheaded girl standing in between the older gentleman and the very short teen boy with spiky hair.

"Lassen sie uns vier zu denjenigen blind sein, die zugang von diesem zimmer verbieten würden. Wir, die nur bequemlichkeit in unserem freund, und frieden in unseren herzen suchen. Göttin segnen."

The nurse frowned and shook her head. She could have sworn that there were four people coming in the room. She put the chart down, walked to the door, and looked out in the hallway. She just saw doctors walking to the nurses station to retrieve charts. She turned back to find the handsome man looking at her with a slight smirk of amusement on his face. She merely shook her head again and left the room.

Angel kept on staring at the group that had moved out of the way as the nurse had walked out the door past them. He spared one look at the gamma before he saw that the werewolf and got up in the boys face. He was able to smell Willow on the boy, just as he could smell the boy on her. He was also able to smell that the boy was anxious with him being so close. He looked at the boy, and then to Willow. He tread over to Willow, wanting to question her and make sure that Oz was the one that she wanted, and that the boy with the inner-animal didn't force her to do something in the heat of the moment. But before he could get too close to her Oz intercepted him and stood in front of the girl. Angle was able to hear the inhuman growl that came from the boys chest and saw that the young man's eyes had turned black. Angel stopped in his tracks and cocked his head to the side and looked at the protective stance that the younger man held over the diminutive red head. Angel let the smirk slip back across his face before he let his voice pass over his lips.

"Willow, come here."

His soft voice was heard throughout the quiet room. The stillness that settled over the room only interrupted by the steady beeping of Buffy's heart monitor. Angel's eyes never leaving the young werewolf's as the young woman slid out from behind of her beau, to stand in front of the vampire.

As the Willow walked past him, Oz tried to grab her arm, but Willow shook him off and stood resolutely in front of both her boyfriend and the vampire that meant so much to her friend.

Angel knew that Oz viewed Willow as his mate, and Angel knew from experience that he gained just that night that you never come between a male and his mate. Even knowing that Angel pushed his luck. He lifted his hand and caressed Willow's head; unknowingly copying the gesture that had helped nudge the Witch and Wolf to taking their big step. Angel felt Willow slightly lean into the touch of his hand and he saw that Oz's face harden in anger. Angel took his hand away and looked away from Oz to focus on Willow.

"Willow. Look at me." And Angel watched as Willow turned her whole body to look at him. He was please that she didn't look him in the eye; submissiveness written all over he body. As he watched her turn he felt Oz tense, almost as if he were readying himself to attack, when he heard someone step between them. Angel looked out of the corner of his eye and saw a sight that surprised him more than he thought possible in his 240 plus years of existence on this planet. He saw that Xander had taken position between them all. Not willing to let any more time waste, he turned his attention back to the witch in front of him.

"Willow, is he the one that you want? Is he the one that you choose to take care of you from now on. Do you choose him as your mate?

Willow snapped her head up to look Angel in the eyes when he said the word 'mate'; her eyes growing wide in surprise and shock. She stared at him for seconds before she realized that he was expecting an answer. She nodded her head rapidly hoping that her hunch about what was going to happen was right.

Just as Angel opened his mouth to speak once again, he heard a voice that made his entire body freeze…

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: The spell that Willow used was translated to German because I couldn't find a decent Latin translator online without paying for it. So I used German. This is what the spell is in English. **Let we four be blind to those who would ban out entry from this room. We who seek only comfort in our friend's, and peace in our hearts. Goddess bless. **I am so sorry that it took me all these months to come out with this chapter, but it just would not come out the way that I wanted it to when I tried to sit down and write it. Finally it happened and this is the result of all those months of work. I hope that everyone likes it and I know what will happen on the next one so there is no way that it will take as long to come out as this one did.**

**Also, I was hoping that you guys could help me with a problem. If, by some chance that the next chapter confirms what I am starting to believe, then I am going to have to either put this story on ****indefinite ****hold, or give it to someone that can focus more attention to this story like it disserves. It's not that I don't like this story, I do. I would like nothing more than to keep on writing this and let you all be surprised with what I have planned for my AU story, but with what it happening in my life, I don't think that I can do that. So what I am wanting those of you who would be willing to take over this series to do is email me a trail chapter. I will read them, and based on that chapter I will name the person that will continue on with this story. Thank you for your patience and reviews, without which this story would have stopped long ago.**


	11. Chapter 9

"Who's mate? And what the hell am I doing here?!"

Angel turned his body to look at the bed that was holding the most precious person in the world. To him at least. His eyes rested on the now open and alert eyes of his love. The hazel eyes that he was peering into were not glazed with fatigue but bright, and full of what he thought was anger. The anger confused him, until he thought that she might be mad that he drank her to the point that she needed the hospital. Seeing the anger in her eyes made all the doubts, fears and insecurities that he normally felt come racing back. He felt his shoulders tense and he looked down in shame of what he had done. In a dark recess of his mind, he felt his true vampire self sneer at his actions of weakness. He didn't do or say anything while he felt her eyes on him. His mind full of doubts and second thoughts about how he had acted towards everyone. He was so lost in thought that he didn't even notice the others crowd around Buffy asking her how she felt and if she was alright.

'_What the hell was I thinking? I __drank__ from her! Why shouldn't she be pissed at me? It doesn't matter that she's the one that hit me until I changed. I should have been able to resist her. I should have stopped myself after the first gulp. What the hell am I thinking? There shouldn't have been a gulp to begin with! What am I going to--'_ Angel's thought's were cut short when he felt a blow land on his cheek bone, forcing his head to snap back. Before he could even think about what he was doing he felt his arm snap out and grabbed the fist that had just struck him. He gripped the wrist and tugged while forcing the arm connected to twist into an almost unnatural position. He was able to stop himself when he heard not only the hiss of pain coming from the body attached to the arm, but also the exclamations of alarm coming from the group that was staring at him in fear. Finally getting a hold of himself, he found that the one face that he couldn't see in the group is the face of his beloved. With a growing sense of fear and nausea, he looked down at the body he held immobile and saw that it was indeed Buffy.

Shocked, he released her and immediately opened his mouth to begin apologizing when Buffy launched herself at him. Bracing himself for more blows that would be coming from the Slayer, he was again shocked when he felt lips on his parted ones. He froze, his eyes getting bigger and bigger by the second as Buffy continued to kiss him. Slowly his eyes fell closed as he felt the tiny nips that she was bestowing on his lower lip give way to an almost teasing kiss. He felt himself sigh and gather her close, trying to fight the urge to take control of the teasing kisses that she was bestowing. Finally, it became too much and he snapped. He moved one hand to the small of her back and the other shoved itself into her hair as he angled her head for his kiss. He growled low in his chest and began the kiss in earnest. He let his tongue trace her lips, giving quick kisses to both corners of her lips before he pulled her lower lip between his teeth and gave a gentle bite. When her mouth opened to release a small moan, he took advantage and invited himself in. His tongue began to explore her teeth, spending time on her own dull canines that seemed sharper than they had been the last time that he had kissed her. Getting tired of her teeth, he moved the kiss back into his own mouth and when her tongue came calling he gently closed his teeth on it and sucked will a slow and gentle pressure. Knowing that she needed to breathe soon, he left her mouth to trail kisses down her neck and when he found the marks that were just beginning to heal, he was unable to keep himself from letting his mouth anchor there and suck. He lost himself for what felt like an eternity in just his gentle ministrations on her neck.

He was jerked out of his silent worship when a throat was cleared very pointedly in the silence that had enveloped the room when Buffy first attacked her lover. His eyes wandered from where they were placed on her neck and raised them to where the noise came from, finding the eyes of the Scooby Gang on them. Xander, Willow, and even stoic Oz were grinning at the obviously happy reunion that they were witnessing. Giles, on the other hand, was looking at the two love struck fools with parental exasperation. Angel couldn't help himself, even though he knew he was far older than anyone in the room, and ducked his head in embarrassment.

"Sorry." This came out in his normal, soulful voice that everyone noticed.

"What the hell happened when I passed out, and why the hell are you calling Willow and Oz mates?" Buffy's voice did not sound like she had just woke up from a deep sleep. Her voice was full, hard and there. It sounded just like she did when a problem popped-up, which seemed to happen more and more often lately. She stayed within the circle of Angel's arms, looking small and frail in contrast to her lover, but everyone in the room know that she held the real power.

No one spoke, instead they all looked to each other trying to figure out who was going to answer her question. The silence seemed to stretch into eternity before it was broken. The shock however didn't end.

"Xander, what happened after I made Angel drink from me?" Buffy's voice was full of curiosity and steel, letting the others know that she expected Xander and only Xander to answer to answer her questions.

"Um, uh, well, G-man, Will and I came to the mansion, you know, to be there for you when Dead- uh I mean Angel… passed. We came in and you were there in his arms and there was blood in his lips and your neck was bleeding and you weren't conscious and then, well he bit us too. And then he brought us here to the hospital and then the Mayor tried to smother you and then you woke up. And here we are. Buff, are you sure that you should be up out of bed so soon. He kinda took a lot from you."

Buffy just stared at Xander with a lost look. She let her gaze travel from Xander to the rest of the Scooby's, then up to her fallen angel. She saw embarrassment, and what looked like a shadow of regret, but nothing to dispute what Xander had just told her. She looked back at her friends and gently disengaged herself from her loves arm's. She walked forward without looking back at Angel's face. As she reached Xander she stood on the tips of her toes and peered at his neck. Even then, she was too short to see anything other than the collar of his t-shirt. She looked him in the eyes and continued to stare at him until her patience gave out.

"Want to help me out here Xand and bend over a little?" Her tone let him know that it was not a request.

Xander seemed to jump at her voice and nodded quickly. He stooped slightly and pulled the neck of his shirt down revealing the twin puncture marks that proved what he had just said. He froze in panic when he saw Buffy raise her hand to gently caress the wounds that her lover had made. As her hands took in the feel of the bite, he saw a quick flash of confusion pass over he face. The thought was lost though when she took her hand away.

The room remained almost deathly still as she continued on through the rest of the gang. One by one she looked and touched the marks that the ensouled vampire had made. But as she finished her inspection of the wounds the look of confusion was firmly planted in place. Quietly, she moved back to Xander and reached up once again to touch his mark. Her fingers were gentle and almost timid in their second exploration. The confusion grew as she maintained the contact to Xander, while turning to look once more at Angel.

"Xander's mark is different. It's deeper, and looks to be more painful. Why?" Though the question was delivered in a tone that held nothing more than curiosity, Angel reacted as if she had screamed the question. His eyes widened and then dropped to the floor in guilt. His shoulders tensed and he answered in a low tone, almost as if the words were being ripped from his throat.

"I… I bit him in punishment. It was meant to be painful, to serve as a reminder."

Giles noted that when Angel spoke about punishment, Buffy's shoulders tensed, and did not relax when Angel finished his short and succinct explanation. Giles was so focused on Buffy that he saw that the hand not touching Xander had started to shake. Just as he was about to speak, to hopefully calm the young woman that he loved like a daughter, Buffy spoke once again.

"I see. And what was he being punished for?" Her voice was like ice and did not only chill everyone in the room, but put Xander and Angel on edge.

"Buff, hey it's ok. What's done is-" Xander tried to speak but was drowned out with a quiet whisper from the Slayer.

"Quiet. Angel, what was his crime?"

Angel shuddered at her tone and began to wonder if he was given a reprieve from death only to be finished by the hands of the woman he loved. But death looming nearer of not he answered.

"He looked me in the eye and refused to drop his gaze"

Giles continued to watch Buffy, not noticing that Willow had joined him in silently observing the small woman. They both saw that her brow quirked with Angel's explanation and that the tense way she carried herself had yet to be relaxed. Giles began to seriously wonder if his slayer was going to try to pummel her love.

"Never again Angel. Don't ever harm him over some stupid macho guy trip. You may have the instincts of a vampire, and I may too, but that doesn't mean that they do, or that they understand why they are being punished. They are human, purely human, and I refuse to let anyone or anything hurt them. That includes you, mate or not. If you have issue with anyone, find a different way to settle it." The voice coming from Buffy was like nothing anyone had ever heard from before. The definitive tone made both Ripper and Angelus think twice in the far reaches of the minds that they were held prisoner in. Just as Giles thought that Buffy was done, she moved once more.

She stepped forward to stand toe to toe with Angel, and looked him in the eye, never letting his gaze fall from her own. As the room watched with bated breath the interaction between the two, Willow was the first one to catch what Buffy had said to Angel. As she felt her eyes grow wide as she tried to figure out why Buffy said that she had Vampiric instincts. Her thoughts were halted when Buffy spoke, her voice not loud, but not a whisper either.

"It's time to tell you all the truth about what happened on the night of my seventeenth birthday. Things are going to happened and you need to know why. I know that you're going to have questions, but just wait till I'm done till you ask them ok?"

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**AN: I know that it's been forever and a day since I've updated, and you will never know how sorry I am about that, but life happens and this is the soonest I could get a chapter out. Also, I have a brand new, and fast beta reader, so please everyone who reads my chapters here on out, give a hand to Queen of Loopholes. She is the one that is going to keep me from repeating the same stupid mistakes that I made in the first few chapters. So, until my muse visits, wishe me luck!**


	12. Chapter 10

"You all know that Angel lost his soul. You all know why it is that he lost his soul. But that's not the only thing that happened that night… I bit him, and I drank some of his blood. When I-- it changed me, but not in the obvious way that you would think." Buffy's voice was soft, softer than it had been even when she first woke up, laced with what could only be labeled as apprehension at her startling revelation. Her eyes drifted down from the tortured orbs of her love to gaze at the floor, seeing her bare feet contrasting with the white and blue speckled linoleum.

"Buffy! Tell me you didn't. Please!" Giles' voice was heavy with shock and recrimination. His only response from his Slayer was a slight flinch then her unwavering gaze being settled on him. Giving a muffled oath he took off his glasses and began to pace in tight circles, running a hand through his thinning hair. Besides Giles, Willow was the only other that knew what significance that held, besides repetition being icky. Her eyes grew to the size of saucers and her mouth gaped in shock.

Willow was the only one that knew of Buffy's little research project, and only because one night the small slayer told her of her confusion based on Angel's actions. Willow turned from her friend to look at her mentor. As she watched the man pace and continue with his muffled words, she realized then that even though Angel was the oldest one there, they all, including the cursed vampire, thought of the ex-watcher as a father figure. She knew that if Giles expressed enough anger or other kinds of negative emotions her friend would do almost anything to make up for it. Willow knew that her friend was not the only one in a rather unconventional relationship. She herself was attracted to a werewolf and now, according to the very old vampire, they were mates. Knowing that once again she was going to have to be the voice of reason, she straightened her shoulders and risked to take a step forward to inturupt the hole that Giles was wearing into the floor of the hospital room.

"Giles, calm down. There's nothing that anyone can do about it now, so just take a chill pill and stop the pacing. Okay?" She knew that her voice had come out rather harsh, stunning the group of people around her with its intensity and she knew that everyone was staring at her in shock. Xander was the only one that knew from past experience that there was a voice to go along with the resolve face that everyone bowed down to. He even knew in what types of situations she would use it, so he was the only one that was not 100 shocked with her tone. There was little that Willow would not do for her friend especially at this moment when she knew that everything was coming to a head.

"I-- I know that what I did was wrong. Especially for a slayer. I know, but…there was just…I let my instincts control me, and you know something? It actually had a good outcome. We're lucky that I did what I did, cause otherwise Faith or I would be dead right now. They told me that there would be this new big bad coming, only it's going to be bigger and badder than anything that we've faced before. They wanted me to fight and kill Faith! They thought that it would prove my worth, as if this was the 16th century at a jousting tournament. They were going to give me Faith's strength in addition to my own. They in their crazy, old-fashioned, warped mind, thought that by me killing Faith and giving me her powers that they would be helping. Then when they found out that I got some extras from my…experience with Angel they decided that they would just take her memories and give her strength to the next Slayer in Training. I know that you're not happy right now, and to tell you the truth, they weren't either, but they realized that good could come of it." Here she stopped for a moment, made sure that he was holding her gaze and continued on, her voice softer, but instead of loosing focus or impact, it seemed to multiply. "Giles, you know where the power of the Slayer comes from, I know you do, even if I'm fuzzy on the details. This power boost that I got from Angel, it doesn't feel wrong, it doesn't set off my slayer. Giles, my slayer welcomed it."

Silence met Buffy's enflamed speech. Everyone wanted to say something, but no one was willing to break the spell that her words had cast on her former watcher. The Scoobies and Angel watched as Slayer and Watcher kept their gazes locked on each other, knowing that a conversation and battle was being waged silently, the only weapons being used were their eyes.

It was Giles that finally broke the hypnotic gaze between him and his slayer. He turned his gaze on the vampire that has surprised him more on this night than in the entire two and a half years that he had known him. Giles thought back on this night, thinking on how he had sided with Buffy against Wesley this night, even though he in the darkest part of his heart still felt anger, blame and hate towards his slayer's former lover. He knew that Angelus was the one responsible for Jenny's death, as well as his own torture, but he could not help the disquieting whispers in his heart that said that Angel was just as responsible. He looked at the ensouled vampire and knew that he would need to come clean about what exactly his demon friend did that night when they were playing Faith, but he knew that now was not the time.

Looking back to his slayer, he realized that he couldn't turn back time and change what she did. And in the back of his mind, he's almost thankful that she did indeed acquiesce to her instincts; he knew that if she were to listen to them she would live a longer life, perhaps not safer, but longer.

"Would it be too much to hope that they were able to come up with a plan about how to stop the ascension?" At his question everyone knew that the issue of Buffy's new gifts was over, not forgotten, but over for this moment.

"Actually, I have a plan. It's crazy and a long shot, but I think that it could work."


End file.
